{"currencyCode":"USD","itemData":[{"priceBreaksMAP":null,"buyingPrice":31.49,"ASIN":"B00009XN37","isPreorder":0},{"priceBreaksMAP":null,"buyingPrice":38.49,"ASIN":"B00008DP4B","isPreorder":0},{"priceBreaksMAP":null,"buyingPrice":29.93,"ASIN":"B002LFPAUC","isPreorder":0}],"shippingId":"B00009XN37::pGAYTCEvNMFMi6nti6lDT2N0jr0rLh62ofLFyKzTliJH4lvkc1dOgJK5A7nOTHhWmb6wtNTFGfiqPLSYM0zVCAWsAAgk3ODX%2Bqm%2FplFGvis%3D,B00008DP4B::wgm%2BN09FsLNw40vUPrh75wo%2FAjfPgXLGcMK4ddAvGR7UZEe62KskplkOVgyfTpET7%2B4nSkaeWTk%2BtVRGsuxBk8%2FSA5U0hKgxKMu3W4weIb4%3D,B002LFPAUC::I7BcyFQmAGMqjVV%2Bl0KANe8K8sTOpUD39bQXecFs2wpqy4YBuY8w3277tfa%2Faun3%2BJt5jncpixoN204GqiqVu6uKnWNL5ExCgpV6%2BPaBIM6BdavA%2B4lxvA%3D%3D","sprites":{"addToWishlist":["wl_one","wl_two","wl_three"],"addToCart":["s_addToCart","s_addBothToCart","s_add3ToCart"],"preorder":["s_preorderThis","s_preorderBoth","s_preorderAll3"]},"shippingDetails":{"xz":"same","xy":"same","yz":"same","xyz":"same"},"tags":["x","y","z","w"],"strings":{"addToWishlist":["Add to Wish List","Add both to Wish List","Add all three to Wish List","Add all four to Wish List"],"addToCart":["Add to Cart","Add both to Cart","Add all three to Cart","Add all four to Cart"],"showDetailsDefault":"Show availability and shipping details","shippingError":"An error occurred, please try again","hideDetailsDefault":"Hide availability and shipping details","priceLabel":["Price:","Price for both:","Price for all three:","Price For All Four:"],"preorder":["Pre-order this item","Pre-order both items","Pre-order all three items","Pre-order all four items"]}}

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Yes, Prime Minister: The Complete Collection (DVD)

Amazon.com

Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn's superb sitcom Yes, Prime Minister entered 10 Downing Street with Jim Hacker now Prime Minister of Britain, following a campaign to "Save the British Sausage." Whether tackling defense ("The Grand Design"), local government ("Power to the People"), or the National Education Service, all of Jim Hacker's bold plans for reform generally come to nothing, thanks to the machinations of Nigel Hawthorne's complacent Cabinet Secretary Sir Humphrey (Jeeves to Hacker's Wooster) who opposes any action of any sort on the part of the PM altogether. This is usually achieved by discreet horse-trading. In "One of Us," for instance, Hacker relents from implementing defense cuts when he is presented with the embarrassingly large bill he ran up in a vote-catching mission to rescue a stray dog on an army firing range. Only in "The Tangled Web," the final episode of series 2, does the PM at last turn the tables on Sir Humphrey. Paul Eddington is a joy as Hacker, whether in mock-Churchillian mode or visibly cowering whenever he is congratulated on a "courageous" idea. Jay and Lynn's script, meanwhile, is a dazzlingly Byzantine exercise in wordplay, wittily reflecting the verbiage-to-substance ratio of politics. Ironically, Yes, Prime Minister is an accurate depiction of practically all political eras except its own, the 1980s, when Thatcher successfully carried out a radical program regardless of harrumphing senior civil servants. --David Stubbs

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

--Sir Humphrey. The Yes, Minister episodes continue with Jim Hacker moving to #10 Downing Street, bringing along private secretary Bernard and, of course, reuniting with the newly promoted Sir Humphrey (whose sentences seem to get longer with each episode). The audio level is better on this set than on the previous one. The cover artwork is not as clean (there are scan lines through the images), but the back cover is very nice with new photos of the three main characters (no photos on the inside as there were in the previous 4-CD set).The 17 brilliant episodes begin with the 1984 1-hour Christmas special that illustrated the chain events elevating Hacker to #10. The special features include the Sir Humphrey's lengthy review of the Yes Minister Diaries, "Christmas at the Ministry" clip, a 1986 Paul Eddington interview, Jonathan Lynn interview, and profiles on the main actors as well as others. A touching biography of Paul Eddington (Nigel Hawthorne was featured in the first set) in also included. The bio includes scenes from 1950s Dixon of Dock Green, Adventures of Robin Hood, and many scenes from The Good Life and some insight on what Margaret Thatcher thought of Prime Minister Hacker. Eddington's wife, Felicity Kendal, Hawthorne, and Derek Fowlds are among those interviewed. It also includes very sad clips of one of Eddington's last interviews when he was suffering through the last stages of the skin cancer that took his life. He handled his illness with much courage and the interviews with his friends and family reveals how fondly he is remembered and how many lives he touched. This set is a must-have for Yes, Minister fans. I have yet to search for the "Easter Egg" the box promises, so happy hunting.

"Yes, Prime Minister" is a wonderfully witty & devastatingly funny show, but I won't waste your time with a synopsis of the series - it is a delight & many reviewers have skillfully done so already. However, since no one else seems to have found it & I can't find it at imdb or moviemistakes or any other half-way competent sites revealing how the easter egg is to be accessed & what it contains, I feel it incumbent on me to do so here.

Go to the "special features" menu on disc 3 & move your mouse (if you're watching this on a computer) over to the line dividing the article on the left & the features menu on the right. Just to the left of the last item, "Trailers", a crudely drawn blue present will appear. Click on that & you will be given a clip from the "Christmas Morning with Noel" broadcast from 1987. It is of P.M. Jim Hacker bungling a holiday message to the viewers. Quite classic!

The majority of people are falling over themselves to watch brainless, charmless and incredibly annoying AMERICAN comedy like Friends and Will and Grace. I've just watched the entire second series and half of the first of Yes, Prime Minister. This is a satirical, well-observed 80's comedy about the political machinations and workings of the British Parliment and the relationships between Minister's and civil servants. Nigel Hawthorne, Paul Eddington and Derek Fowlds are all superb in this. Great acting, script, and message that puts most comedy to shame and doesn't patronize the viewer or insult their intelligence.Highly reccomended

At almost 20 years old now, this award winning series still represents the finer aspects of great British comedy. Set in the 80's in which it was made, it satirically mirrors the politics of the era with a wry and subtle genius that is a joy to behold. All that said, a little familiarity with British politics, or the British culture in general helps tremendously. I am not surprised at the success of this series here in the States, but the uninitiated viewer may be being sold a little short on the finer aspects of the characters, and the dry humor. Jim Hacker (Paul Eddington) is the central character (following on from the Yes Minister series) thrust almost unwittingly into the limelight of the Prime Ministerial race, and sets about running the country with the same graceful ineptitude he applied to his previous ministerial post in the deparment of administrative affairs. Nigel Hawthorne is masterful as "Sir Humphrey" his "advisor" and head of the civil service who has his own agenda throughout, and plays all sides against the middle with varying levels of success. The final main Character is Hackers private secretary Bernard (Derek Fowlds) who often naively walks a middle line between helping the PM, but always being aware of his own allegiances to Humphrey (being a civil servant himself). This set begins with Hackers rise to power, and then contains all the subsequent episodes where the three characters play out some hilarious, and often thought provokingly satirical situations in a balanced and polished collection. Being a topically based political comedy obviously has its pitfalls, and those too young to remember the "Thatcher" years of British government, soviet spies, and the peaks and troughs of the economy during the 80's may view this a somewhat bland.Read more ›

After watching all the Jeremy Brett "Sherlock Holmes" series, Ian Richardson in the "House of Cards," and now Nigel Hawthorne in "Yes, Prime Minister, I can truly say it will be difficult for an American not to become a (British) flag waving Anglophile.

The pure pleasure of this satirical comedy is not something that can be found on American TV. I enjoyed hearing the beauty of the English language the way it should be spoken.

This program will not be for all audiences, however, if one appreciates a sharp wit, clever irony, and a hilarious display of political chicanery, this DVD collection is a treasure.